AN: Thank you for all the support! It is very deeply appreciated!
It was always nice to be amidst the clouds.
Severus leaned against a bleached, marble wall. Dismas stood beside him, conjuring a cumulus chair. Once finished, he pointed to it. Severus gave a small nod before sitting upon it.
"From the brightness of your glow, I can tell that things are going well with Hermione." Dismas created a cloud chair for himself.
"Indeed they are," Severus reported. "We are even on a first name basis."
"You weren't before?"
He shook his head.
"That's odd."
"Perhaps to an outsider but I was quite sure how to address a former student or how I wanted to be addressed. Given the nature of the mission, I thought professional distance was a requirement." He shook his head. "Clearly I was wrong on all accounts."
"At least you're on a first name basis now, which means you're starting to figure out how heaven works."
"What do you mean?"
"You need to understand how spirits treat each other in the afterlife."
He cocked his head.
"Heaven is about forming relationships, not business transactions, at least that is the ideal."
"Is heaven ideal?"
"For the most part yes, though what counts as ideal is often challenged once one enters through the pearly gates."
"Would you care to elaborate upon that?"
"Everyone has an ideal society in mind when they come to heaven. Almost everyone is disappointed once they realize heaven is not that, although most argue it is better than they ever could've imagined."
Severus stared at the top of the wall. "All I desire for is peace. As long as I have found that I will find heaven satisfactory."
"You will find peace in your own time."
"I hope so anyway."
The marble glistened in the sunlight. It struck Severus as odd that he felt no need to shield his eyes from it. He was free to enjoy its beauty without the fear of pain. There were definite advantages to being a spirit...
"How is Hermione's potion coming along?" Dismas asked.
Severus returned his attention to the saint. "It is going along splendidly. In fact, I believe we have created it."
"You have?"
"Yes." Severus' glow was almost as bright as the wall. "We only have a few more steps, but if it passes my inspection she can call a research university and have it undergo medical testing."
"What then?"
"Hopefully we find a way to give it to her father without raising suspicion. That may be difficult given the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy…"
Dismas burst out laughing.
Severus closed his mouth.
"I apologize, but in the last four hundred years or so I have heard that silly law come up so many times, as if the Trinity themselves must abide by it." He stopped chuckling. "The whole thing amuses me."
"It is very important for wizards to keep themselves secret."
"Why?" Dismas pointed at the top of the wall. "Nobody behind there cares about magic or muggle. All are equal."
"I suppose so, but there is a major issue..."
"Like what?" Dismas asked. "If everyone is equal in the afterlife, why segregate yourself on earth?"
Severus glanced back at the wall. "From that perspective I suppose I don't know what the issue is."
"One of the things you will soon learn is that the Trinity is not bound by external constraints such as laws or human expectations. If they want something done, then it will be done, secrecy laws or not."
"If they can just impose their will on the world, then why don't they do things themselves?"
"Because they do not wish to spend all their time wiping everyone's butts."
"I suppose it would be odd for God to wipe my butt." Severus deadpanned.
"It would be." Dismas grinned.
"It would feel terrible to be nothing more than their glorified pet yet," Severus' glow dimmed. "Could they have not stepped in and stopped at least some of the atrocities I experienced?"
"That's one of the problems with depending upon free will, your creations are going to behave in ways you do not approve of." Dismas' glow lessened. "It's frustrating to watch people make the same mistakes over and over again, but if they give free will to one person, they must give free will to all people. It is up to each person to use it as best they determine."
"I still wish they had thwarted Voldemort a few times."
"They gave each person the tools they needed to defeat him, and made sure the right people met at the right times. It wasn't a perfect process, and if certain people had behaved differently it would have gone smoother. Still, his defeat was accomplished."
"True."
"Discussions of free will aside." Dismas leaned back in his chair. "I am surprised you were not spending your Sunday with Hermione."
"She is visiting her parents."
"I see."
"I am happy for her although." Severus was a slight blue. "I do miss her."
"Terribly?"
"I wouldn't say that much, but she is better company than Black."
Dismas smirked. "You two still don't get along, do you?"
"I fear being amicable is as friendly as we'll ever be with each other."
"That's already quite a bit of progress from not wanting to help him at all, so that part of the plan is working well."
"Indeed it is." Severus' glow was a dull yellow.
Dismas leaned over. "You appear to have something on your mind."
"If I can be blunt, I'm a little bothered by the mission." Severus crossed his legs. "I'm still not sure what I'm looking for."
"What do you mean?"
"I have never experienced anything resembling eudaimonia. If Hermione were to achieve it, I do not know if I would recognize it."
"We would tell you if she had obtained it."
"I know, but then I would be unable to tell her farewell."
"You'll get that chance."
"I will?" His glow brightened.
Dismas nodded. "Hermione is being very cooperative in our program. The least we can do is give her closure once it ends."
"Cooperative?"
"Yes, she is cooperating very well."
"Are you implying that she knew about all this beforehand?"
"No, she was as clueless about all this as you were." The saint replied. "Still, we are pleased she accepted your help so readily. It would've been hard for us to find a new project for you and Sirius if she had not."
"You had Hermione picked out from the beginning then?"
"More or less."
"How long ago did you determine she needed us?" Severus' voice was low.
"From the minute she kissed Ron," Dismas answered.
Severus gave him a half smile. "I suppose she did need help after that."
"She needed much more than she realized."
"Indeed."
Dismas ran his hands along the cloud.
"Have you ever experienced eudaimonia?"
He returned his attention to Severus.
"I know the story says you found forgiveness on the cross. Did you experience eudaimonia there too?"
"I did find redemption on the cross," Dismas answered. "Though it's difficult to say I felt eudaimonia with spikes in my feet and wrists."
"That would be hard."
"That being said, there was one moment where I felt complete."
Severus' eyes sparked in interest.
"It was the night before my crucifixion." His glow lessened. "I was in a cell with Gestas and Barabbas. We knew Pilate was going to execute us, there was no way he wouldn't with all the crimes we'd committed. I was trembling so hard I couldn't see straight. Every person I'd ever killed flashed before my mind. For the first time, I understood how they felt in their last moments, when they were pleading for their lives with my dagger pointed at their throats."
Severus hummed.
"Gestas was ranting about how unjust the whole process was." Dismas' glow flickered. "He never knew when to shut up."
Severus hummed.
"Barabbas finally told him to be quiet and stood up. He motioned for both of us to sit in front of him, so we did. He told us," Dismas' voice cracked. "We were a family. We always had been, and we always would be. We were going to face death together, as brothers. I remember him looking Gestas and me in the eyes and saying, 'it will be an honor to hang between you two.'"
"How did you know where you would hang?"
"Pilate knew who our leader was."
"How?"
"That isn't relevant. What is relevant is that I remember that I grew still, and Gestas grew quiet. After what seemed like an eternity, we stood and embraced." Dismas was a dark blue. "I no longer felt alone."
"Did you find eudaimonia in that moment?"
"I wouldn't say I was flourishing, but I did find peace," he whispered.
"I wish I had had a moment like that," Severus whispered.
"Don't give up on searching for it." Dismas took his hand. "You have an eternity to find that peace. That's more than enough time to obtain it."
Severus felt a warmth and a sense of calm fill his entire essence. His lips curled up.
"When you experience eudaimonia, you will know it beyond a shadow of a doubt." His glow had returned to its regular hue.
"What about when Hermione experiences it? Will I recognize it then?"
"You will." He squeezed Severus' hand.
Severus' glow was as radiant as the sun. "Thank you for having faith in me. I think you're the only person who ever has ever helped me without an ulterior motive."
"That's a shame." He released Severus. "You deserved so much better in life."
"I think I'm starting to believe it."
"You should believe it." Dismas stood. "Now, Sirius is still scouring the earth for that soulmate, correct?"
"Don't remind me." Severus bowed his head.
"Are you still having difficulty buying into his plan?"
"I don't know. Perhaps I am jealous that he thought of it, or perhaps I am afraid of Hermione having her heart broken again."
"You cannot control whether or not Hermione gets her heart broken. All you can do is be the friend she needs, wherever that is."
"I can do that."
"I know you can."
A comfortable silence fell between them.
"Would you like to take a walk with me, or would you like a cloud fight?" Dismas asked.
"A cloud fight?"
Dismas made a ball from the top of a cloud. Then he threw it at Severus. It disintegrated upon hitting his face.
"Would I get more Purgatory time if I retaliated?" Severus asked.
"Of course not! Getting retaliation would imply you caught me anyway!"
Severus leapt up. "I will show you just how capable I am in a cloud fight."
"Just try and catch me!"
Severus scowled as the saint darted away. He formed a ball from the cloud and chased him.
He'd show Dismas exactly why he was regarded as the best snowball fighter Hogwarts had ever seen.